“Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.” (Matthew 5: 11-12)

I think some people want to be offended these days. Being offended has become an art form in our culture—something to work at, often in creative ways. (Before we go further though, let me state that I am totally against mean-spirited jokes or comments and bullying.)

Last year, I wrote about people offended by Christmas. The power of a nativity scene to send anti-God folks into a tailspin has been proven year after year. But there were some over-achievers at the University of Tennessee last year when the tax-supported Office for Diversity and Inclusion reached new heights (or lows).

Students were warned to ensure their holiday parties were not Christmas parties in disguise. Cards, games, gifts, and party foods were to be non-specific to cultures and religions. Word leaked out about that ridiculousness so the diversity police ended up with figgy pudding all over their face. They reissued a statement to just be sensitive to others. Because people might forget.

Actually, I personally can see being offended by something evil connected to Halloween. But seriously, do you think getting affirmed by a counselor would help that? In such a case, I’d probably just get laughed at since it’s Halloween at a secular university.

Yet, if I called the Wellness Center to complain that someone dressed up as a Catholic priest at a party and it made me feel judged for coming as a Playboy bunny, I bet I’d get some choice-affirming comfort. The guy in the priest costume would probably get a warning.

Too Much Love?

Do you think my example is silly? Think again. At Oklahoma Wesleyan University, a student complained about a university chapel service sermon on the topic of 1 Corinthians 13. He said it made him feel “victimized.” (Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud….)

In addition to informing the student that he ran a university, not a day care, Dr. Piper said: “That feeling of discomfort you have after listening to a sermon is called a conscience. …The goal of many a good sermon is to get you to confess your sins—not coddle you in your selfishness. The primary objective of the Church and the Christian faith is your confession, not your self-actualization.”

Dr. Piper advised: “If you want the chaplain to tell you you’re a victim rather than tell you that you need virtue, this may not be the university you’re looking for….At OKWU, we teach you to be selfless rather than self-centered. We are more interested in you practicing personal forgiveness than political revenge….”

It will affect the 700 city employees and anyone who reads their “closed” signs. Apparently, the decision was based on people opposed to the city posting closing signs referencing these holidays on the front doors of City Hall.

Imagine all the people that might be offended if they can’t get into city hall only to learn that the employees are off practicing penance and fasting on their Christian holiday or somewhere contemplating Christopher Columbus’s discovery of the new world?

What About Our Pain?

While citizens are being formed in oversensitivity, I’d like to know: where can I go when my feelings get hurt? For instance, after I stood with a group prayerfully supporting our North Dakota law enforcement (because pipeline protests can be stressful) I was told by a relative: “You people are the worst kind of f---ing Christians!” Never mind that I explained we prayed for everyone and nothing unkind was said.

Earlier in the month, after I wrote a post-election article saying we should pray for Donald Trump I was told: “I used to think you were a good person but now I’m not so sure.” I was called a racist and hypocrite. My husband and I have taken in five people from Kenya (four call us mom and dad and one calls us grandma and grandpa) and we had a Native American foster daughter for a year and a half, but I’m apparently a racist now.

I am hurt, but I know where to go with those feelings. The same place I always go. To Jesus and his Blessed Mother. They know all about being offended. And being hurt is an opportunity to offer it up for the offenders.

Payback will be sweet. Jesus showed me by his example how to love and pray for others when they offend me. He also told me that I have been blessed. “Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.” (Matthew 5: 11-12).

I am so grateful to see you fighting back for all of us who do not have the platform of a blog that is widely read.
Another example: no matter how one might feel view Trump’s election, it is hard not to be pleased with the exposure of ideological (i.e., political) correctness and the lies and hypocrisy that have been forced upon us by arrogant elitists.

It is time for all sane adults to speak up against the bullying of those with these agendas.

Posted by Will on Monday, Dec, 5, 2016 4:07 PM (EDT):

Some people (right, left, where ever) are going to complain about anything and everything. With the internet you can hear about it all. People need to screen out junk.

Posted by Leo on Monday, Dec, 5, 2016 3:58 PM (EDT):

I AM DEEPLY OFFENDED !!!

- you are making fun of those who are easily offended and have thin skins!!!

</irony>

More seriously though, maybe there are lots of many angry/frightened/powerless-feeling people around, who direct their anger and fear somewhere - whether it is for/against a cause or person ... manipulative politicians can exploit this for their own ends.

Posted by squire98 on Monday, Dec, 5, 2016 3:30 PM (EDT):

It is claimed that Teddy Roosevelt once said: “To anger a conservative,tell a lie; to anger a liberal, tell the truth”. Reality can be offensive and downright ugly to those who deny it. We should never shrink from telling the truth even if it is offensive to those who deny it.

Posted by Michael on Monday, Dec, 5, 2016 2:40 PM (EDT):

Only a fool thinks all people can be pleased. As a choir director, I offended my pastor because I used “We Three KINGS” at Epiphany mass. He asked that I never use it again. I asked what offended him? “They are MAGI, not KINGS.” He answered with a long, scholarly explanation. Trying to add some humor relief to the discussion, I sang the first line substituting Magi/Kings to demonstrate how the rhythm is not compatible. He didn’t smile or change his angry tone. Finally, I respectfully told him I appreciated his passion on the matter, but few in the pew would care. l offer a new Beatitude - “Blessed are those who realize some will disagree with your belief.” Merry Christmas (not Xmas) to all. “God Rest Ye MERRY, GENTLE-PERSONS, let nothing you dismay”

Posted by C-Marie on Monday, Dec, 5, 2016 1:59 PM (EDT):

And hopefully the real payback will be the healings and salvation of many of those by whom you have been hurt, as a result of your prayers for them.. Those results you may well not see here, but in Heaven they will be rejoicing forever for you who prayed for them.

God bless, C-Marie

Posted by Howard on Monday, Dec, 5, 2016 1:52 PM (EDT):

Being offended these days is not so much an art as a BUSINESS. Quite a few people are professional offense-takers. It’s not just, as the expression goes, that “haters gotta hate”—they are PAID to hate, and never to be satisfied by any offer of compromise or reconciliation short of unconditional surrender.

To be fair, we have our own professionals in this line of work: Bill Donohue’s job is finding things to be offended at on behalf of the Catholic Church, and he seems to make a decent living that way.

Posted by bumble bee on Monday, Dec, 5, 2016 1:03 PM (EDT):

Oh boy!, you have got this right on target. I am all for expressing ones opinion no matter what it may be. What the problem is, is that people think because they are or perceive they are offended that gives them some mandated right to attack what ever the offense could be. The hypocritical/ironic portion of this is that they do not respect anyone else’s offense, and call it all kinds of derogatory names. Perhaps we should be calling this “know-it-all” syndrome in which a person believes they are so politically correct any deviation from their own narrative is proof positive that person is as they label them. This phenomenon is why I distance myself from these types of people regardless of interaction or degree of personal relationship. They suck the life out of life, are nothing more than a burden to be associated with, and are irredeemable because their hypocrisy will not allow them to be. I would really like to know why this is so prevalent and how to deal with these types because all I have now is to ignore them or walk away. They don’t even understand their own hate, nor how out of control it has become. They are in fact just screaming meemies/harpies and I wish there was a form of bug spray we could use when they get out of control.

Posted by Wiliam F Cavender on Monday, Dec, 5, 2016 12:51 PM (EDT):

And we must be ever alert to molecular aggression, the even more subtle form that is no-doubt rampant if we could only recognize it.
Never fear, a progressive is here.
Very soon we will be told to carry Geiger counters.
Blast the offenders into subatomic particles.
Well, sympathy, sympathy, what do the libs and progs have “left:” Hillary, New York state and California?
WFC

Posted by Joanne S. on Monday, Dec, 5, 2016 12:34 PM (EDT):

I think some people look to be offended. Some have a chip on their shoulder and use their ethnicity, for example, as the reason behind every disagreement someone may have with them. Political correctness has so gone off the charts that it’s almost impossible NOT to offend someone, even when you walk on egg shells, so to speak, to avoid misunderstandings.

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Patti Armstrong is an award-winning author and was the managing editor and co-author of Ascension Press’ bestselling Amazing Grace series. Her latest books are: Big Hearted: Inspiring Stories From Everyday Families and Dear God, You Can’t Be Serious. She has a B.A. in social work and an M.A. in public administration and worked in both those fields before staying home to work as a freelance writer. Patti and her husband live in North Dakota, where they are still raising the tail end of their 10 children.